Hi from Hamble

[Dave]

Hi all, nice to find a new forum....Ive been on and around sportsboats for quite a while....raced as Navigator for 11 years in a row, mostly in open B-23 Batboats with one year in a cat and one in V-24....retired from that at the end of 2010....current boat is a Sea Ray 270 Sundancer (see pic in Sea Ray section) but had several before this including Ring 21C, Rinker 192, Phantom 19 racedeck, Formula 292, Chapparal 2350 and a couple of small Fletchers at the start of it all back in 1991.
Cruising now and loving it......Hamble / Solent / IOW based
Voodoo Doll is out of the water at the moment undergoing some mechanical surgery sadly..(££££££)....back in at the end of March
The name derived from our previous boat called Voodoo which I loved (Ring 21C).....

[Dave]

[Ianfs]

Hi Dave, welcome.

Nice cruising grounds. Can I ask what mechanical issues you've had?

[Dave]

Hi Ian......she sat all last winter on a horrible (but cheap) manky boatyard berth on the Itchen, and we decided to move her to a new home at the top of the Hamble and pull her out and get drives and engines serviced and front and rear control cable changed at the same time......couldn't start the stbd engine on the move day so made our way on the other engine just to get there...(berthing was interesting). All the servicing was going well when we discovered the Stbd engine was full of water, so we had a new long block and manifolds that side. Port motor was good.
At the end of this last season we pulled her out in November for winterising and some bits and bobs, to find both transom shields had corroded badly and the port side actually had a hole in a well disguised old repair....and both drives were in poor shape corrosion wise. So since then she has had both drives, motors and transom shields out ...new drives, new transom shields and gimble assemblies, and a good clean and paint of the engine bay. As we speak the transom shields / gimble assemblies are in, plus the exhaust Y pieces and shes going into the workshop where its warmer to have the motors refitted, some new hose for the blower etc etc....also new manifolds for the port motor, to stop it going the same way as the other one did...While its inside we will get all the camper cover down and clean and re-waterproof that......The new drives will go on right at the end..just before she goes back in sometime in March...I'm a bit paranoid about somebody stealing them.....new props as well. Bought then from a bloke on Boatmad and had them rebushed and fettled etc....Mirage 19s to match the 1.62/1 ratio on the new drives. I'll keep the stainless 21s that I was using as spares...or sell them if anyone needs a pair.

I think that's about it.....spent quite a bit in her in a year, but she really suits us and the cabin and cockpit was already refurbished when we bought her so its superb. We stay on her every weekend from April to October whether we go anywhere or not....and had a great 9 days away in September last year...

[Ianfs]

so we had a new long block and manifolds that side.

"Manifolds", pleural, consequently I'm guessing 4.3 V6's, either Mercruiser or Volvo. ........Diesel or Petrol, let me guess, Petrol?

[shibbs]

Wow that's a repair bill, quite a list of work there. I always have to look at things like that on the bright side and think what a great time you will get out of her for the year - making it all worth while.!!!

[Dave]

so we had a new long block and manifolds that side.

"Manifolds", pleural, consequently I'm guessing 4.3 V6's, either Mercruiser or Volvo. ........Diesel or Petrol, let me guess, Petrol?

Hi Ian, yep twin V6 Mercruisers......enough power to do what we need and not at all noisy......I had a formula once with twin 7.4s....now that was proper thirsty....like standing there with a fire hose for the fuel....

[Dave]

Wow that's a repair bill, quite a list of work there. I always have to look at things like that on the bright side and think what a great time you will get out of her for the year - making it all worth while.!!!

Thanks Stu, its the only way to look at it all really isn't it....what you get at the end for the spring and summer etc.. is the boat we love that works a treat....as I said we spend a lot of time on board, rain or shine and I hate things that don't work properly....plus we could hardly not get all the work done...makes her unusable and unsell-able so stuffed either way. we have all seen boats that are stuck in a boatyard on blocks or a trailer costing storage etc that need work done and have been left for yonks....heartbreaking. and a horrible position to be in........broke now but it will be worth it.

[Ianfs]

That is a sad heartbreak story Dave.

I'm no expert but it must be unusual to have a transom shield corrode, unless there was maybe a water leak through the tiller bearing. Now the Gimbal Housings on the other hand, don't start me off on those babies.....

As Stu said though, you are now going to get quite a number of good trouble free years from her and as she has had the interior refirb'd she's virtually a brand new boat.

Oh BTW I've sent you a pm.

[Dave]

hi Ian....yeah we should be ok for a while now....maybe I should do a proper renaming ceremony and get some good luck.....

I have sent you PM twice, please let me know if you haven't received anything....

Dave